Month: December 2021

HHS distributing $9 billion in COVID-19 relief funds to providers this week

HHS distributing $9 billion in COVID-19 relief funds to providers this week

Average payments are $58,000 for small providers, $289,000 for medium providers, and $1.7 million for larger providers. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), said it’s distributing about $9 billion in Provider Relief Fund payments to providers, with a particular focus on smaller providers. This is […]
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New COVID-19 ICD-10-CM and PCS Codes Coming in 2022

New COVID-19 ICD-10-CM and PCS Codes Coming in 2022

The package includes three ICD-10-CM and seven procedure codes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have both stated that in April 2022, we will have three new ICD-10-CM codes and seven new procedure codes for COVID-19 therapeutics and vaccines. You may recall that in […]
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Introduction to the WHO’s ICD-11

Introduction to the WHO’s ICD-11

Cluster coding is a new feature for coding professionals. The World Health Organization (WHO) began developing the International Classification of Diseases, Eleventh Version (ICD-11), in 2007, and first released a preliminary version for evaluation and testing in 2016 – ironically, just one year after the U.S. finally adopted a clinical modification of the WHO’s ICD-10 […]
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The 2022 OPPS/ASC Final Rule Finalizes 2% Boost in Payment Rates

The 2022 OPPS/ASC Final Rule Finalizes 2% Boost in Payment Rates

CMS dramatically increases financial penalties for noncompliance with hospital price transparency rules. On Nov. 2, 2021, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the calendar year (CY) 2022 Hospital Outpatient Prospective Payment System (OPPS) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) Payment System final rule, finalizing payment rates and policy changes affecting Medicare services furnished […]
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The Mississippi’s Medicaid Expansion Could Reduce State Medicaid Spending

The Mississippi’s Medicaid Expansion Could Reduce State Medicaid Spending

  Mississippi’s Medicaid program ranks poorly for its access to and quality of care, but Medicaid expansion could increase healthcare coverage along with lowering state Medicaid spending. Mississippi could achieve lower state Medicaid spending over the course of five years by expanding its Medicaid program with the American Rescue Plan boost to federal matching, a […]
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The Medical Coding News in November

The Medical Coding News in November

Take 5 to read up on recent coding and billing news. There are plenty of coding updates in November, including those made to certain Medicare policies. Payment thresholds for physical, occupational, and speech-language pathology are also posted for the 2022 calendar year, as are Medicare cost sharing amounts. And HCPCS Level II code set updates […]
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Learn More About 2022 HCPCS Level II Code Changes

Learn More About 2022 HCPCS Level II Code Changes

In first-quarter 2022, the HCPCS Level II code set will get a refresh with several new, revised, and deleted codes. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), there are: 155 new codes, 63 revised codes, and 48 deleted codes. Medical coders and billers: Familiarize yourself now with these code changes so you’re […]
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